Project: Popularity
by amazeedayzee
Summary: This story is on permanent hiatus because I've realized it sucks terribly.
1. The First One

Summary: Hinata transfers to Konoha High, only to be greeted with a project involving her, created by another girl. Meanwhile, boy problems arise, visitors from the past come, and five girls wonder just how strong their bond is. Pairings revealed in time.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Any other works to which I reference are the property of their creators/owners.

**XXX**

"Yo, Hinata," Inuzuka Kiba greeted, "What happened? You're usually never this close to the second bell."

"I got stopped by a hall monitor," Hinata said, sliding into a seat next to Kiba.

"Huh? What could they stop you for? Well, if they bother you again, let me know and I'll smack them one for you, 'kay?" Kiba grinned. The blue-haired girl smiled at him.

"Thank you, Kiba, but that's really not necessary. A girl on her way to class stopped and helped me out (1)," Hinata replied.

"A girl? Who—" But just as Kiba was going to ask, Kakashi stepped into the room, late as always. The students of fourth period art scrambled into their seats as they hurriedly cut off conversation with their friends.

"Good morning, class. So sorry I'm late, a lady was about to give birth and I had to rush her to the hospital." Of course, everyone knew this was a lie, simply based on the fact that Kakashi was always too busy reading to notice anything.

"Anyways—" But he was cut off by the opening of the door, and in poked a head.

"Uh, this is art class, right?" Temari said, peering into Room 34.

"Yeah, and I take it that you two are…" Kakashi checked his roll call sheet, "Temari and Gaara, right? All right then, I'm Instructor Kakashi. I think there're two seats for you in the back. Right there, almost in the corner, you see it?"

"They look kind of intimidating," Kiba commented, eyeing Temari's height and Gaara's cold face as they made their way to the back.

"That girl's the one I was telling you about," Hinata whispered, not wanting to be overheard by Kakashi, who gave out horrible punishments if a student was caught talking – and smiled while he informed him or her of their fate. She checked over Temari's appearance once more to make sure she was the one who helped her out. Yep, there was no doubt about it. No other person Hinata knew wore their hair in four ponytails. Kiba raised an eyebrow at this statement.

"Her? Doesn't really look like the type to do that sort of stuff, does she…" he said.

"Well, I don't know, but she seemed really nice—" But alas, their conversation was once again interrupted by Kakashi. The instructor fumbled through his notes and found his plan for the day. Clearing his throat, he looked at the class and spoke:

"Alright! I'm assigning a project to you as of now!" He heard 40 "thumps" as each person in the room fell down anime-style.

"But it's only the first day of school!" a girl called out.

"Oh, don't worry! It'll be due in four months, right before second semester begins! And, you'll be working in pairs so you won't have to do everything by yourself.

"The project will be about different art styles, ancient, modern, whatever. Focus on the aspects of that art style, notable artists who used it, and when and where it was used. Try to include examples. It is worth 100 points and is 50 of your first semester grade, so if you do badly on it, you can expect a C or lower on your report card," Kakashi chirped, crushing every last bit of each student's hope for a good year. Well, at least they would be able to choose partners, right?

"Oh yeah, and to prevent any unproductive work time going on, you'll be choosing who your partner is by this fishbowl!" The members of Room 34 groaned, silently wondering if Kakashi could read minds.

"If I call your name, come up and choose a name from the fishbowl: Yamanaka Ino, Gaara, Haruno Sakura, Inuzuka Kiba, and (insert 16 random names here)," declared Kakashi. The said people marched up to the fishbowl in a somewhat melancholy manner.

After extracting white slips of paper from the glass fishbowl, everyone just stood awkwardly at the front of the room. No one seemed to be willing to go to his or her partner. Kakashi waited impatiently, and finally whispered, "Extra credit to the first one to go." That was the only motivation people needed, as twenty suddenly stampeded to the other twenty, jostling people in their way.

Hinata looked around the room, craning her head to see if anyone was advancing towards her desk. But thirty seconds passed and still no one was there. Had there been a mistake in writing the names for the fishbowl? Maybe there were an odd number of students? Endless possibilities echoed through Hinata's mind. She tried to concentrate on something else, and decided to see what the other new girl, Temari, was doing. Turning around in her chair, Hinata could see that Temari had been paired with Yamanaka Ino. She wasn't sure how they would get along, given that she had only just transferred to Konoha High. Then she realized that there was a redhead – Gaara, Hinata remembered – who was saying something to Temari. The Hyuuga froze when she realized that Temari was pointing at her and that Gaara was coming towards her. Hinata's body went rigid and she hastily snapped around and stared at the wood of her desk. _Oh, why does _now _have to the time that I'm not seen as invisible?_ she thought with dread.

_Thump – thump_. The soft sounds of his footsteps seemed greatly magnified in Hinata's perceiving of the situation, until she heard only the moderate chatter of students.

"I'm your partner for this assignment," Gaara stated shortly.

"O-okay…um…" Hinata stuttered, not knowing what to say. She watched out of the corner of her eye as Gaara pulled out a chair and sat down, hands folded and eyes closed. _This is so awkward… why does fate have to be so twisted?_

"Uh…s-so, which art style do you want to do?" she bravely asked after staring at her desk for about thirty seconds.

He did not reply. Hinata sighed and tried again.

"Where do you want to meet?" At this, Gaara's eyes slowly opened and he turned his head to look at her. Hinata cringed, averting her gaze.

"For working outside of…outside of school…"

"…My house (2)," the redhead finally replied. Hinata exhaled in relief. _Now that's finally over…_

_Bee-p_ went the school's peculiar bell, signaling lunch to start. Students packed up their things and piled out of Room 34 at the moment the bell sounded. Hinata had just slung her backpack onto both shoulders when someone tapped her on the back. She looked behind her and saw Temari.

"Hey. Want to sit with my siblings and I for lunch?" she asked casually. Hinata was taken aback by this sudden offer. _Well, I was going to sit with Kiba and Shino…but I guess it'd be kind of rude to turn her down, wouldn't it… _she thought inwardly. _I suppose I'll just explain it to them later._

"Well, okay, then…" Hinata ended up saying, nervous as ever when talking to someone with whom she was unfamiliar. Temari seemed to sense this.

"It'll be alright, my brothers are nice. Gaara's kind of quiet, but you get used to it after years of living with him," she said, pushing open the door. "He's your partner for the art project, right?"

"Yes…why isn't he with you right now?" Hinata wondered out loud.

"It's 'cause you're here," Temari replied, and laughed when Hinata made an odd "eep!" sort of sound. "Don't worry, he's just not so social. Didn't even try asking the teacher when he didn't know who 'Hyuuga Hinata' was, and came to his dear old sister instead."

"O-oh…" Hinata said, "Um, if you don't mind me asking, who's your other brother?"

"His name's Kankuro, a year younger than me, a year older than Gaara (3). We all usually stick together, but he didn't want to take art and I didn't want to take British Literature," Temari said, "so our schedules are kind of different now."

"I wish I had siblings so close to my age," Hinata said, "but I only have one, a little sister who's five years younger. I have a cousin who goes to this school, but we don't talk much."

"Ah. So your sister's in fourth grade now, right? I have a friend that I like to consider as the sister I never had," Temari said, looking a bit far away as she reminisced, "but she's still in Suna. That's where I moved from."

"I see…well, I'm sure you'll be able to see her soon!" Hinata assured her.

"Thanks," Temari smiled, "Oh, here's the cafeteria…"

It was quite remarkable how even within ten minutes, teenagers still managed to make a huge mess – and noise – in the cafeteria. Girls talked with each other animatedly about fashion, summer vacation, and school so far, while some of the guys made paper airplanes and throwing them at people's heads, getting caught by teachers in the process. A few troublemakers stared dejectedly at their trash bag, having been punished with picking up trash in the cafeteria until they filled their bag. Of course, some of them simply got the trash out of the garbage can, or got it from their friends directly instead of from the ground. In the corner, a few boys were whacking the vending machine to force their beverage to come out, ignorant of the sign that clearly read 'Out of Order'.

"So, did you bring your lunch or are you getting it from school?" Temari asked.

"I brought mine. I never really liked school lunches," Hinata replied.

"Yeah, same here," Temari said, scanning the cafeteria for her brothers. "Oh, I think that's them over there. Yeah, Kankuro's waving at me, thinks I'm blind, does he? Come on, Hinata, let's go." She strode off towards a table near the wall, Hinata following close behind, taking caution not to get lost in the sea of teenagers.

"What took you so long? And who's _she_?" Kankuro said once they reached the table. He eyed Hinata suspiciously, who was cowering, half hidden behind Temari at the moment.

"She's Hyuuga Hinata, a new freshman. And she's going to be eating with us today," Temari said, stepping aside so Hinata's face could be seen. She stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do or say.

"Um, hello…I'm Hinata…" she said, almost in a whisper. With three people's concentration on her, she couldn't help but think that she was going to pass out at any moment from nerves.

"I think we knew that much already, Hinata," Kankuro smirked. Hinata's face flushed and she stared at her feet.

"Aw, stop it Kankuro, you're embarrassing her," Temari said, pulling out a chair across from Gaara. She motioned for Hinata to sit in the seat next to her. She took it and muttered a "thank you". Just as Hinata was about to take the first bite of her lunch, a yellow blur came bounding down to their table.

"Hey! How'd you guys like to join the drama club?" he practically yelled at them, attracting the attention of the surrounding tables. A girl with carnation-pink hair came running after him, looking livid.

"Naruto! Why'd you have to go running off to the other side of the cafeteria _just_ to find people to sign up?" she said, stopping to catch her breath.

"Eh-he-he…sorry, Sakura!" Naruto replied, scratching his head nervously. "But no one else on that side looked like they wanted to join, and plus, these people look nice!" Sakura sighed deeply and took out a clipboard. Hinata caught a glimpse of the paper attached to it and saw that there were many lines, but only five or so names.

"Oh well. Anyways, I guess we went to the trouble of running here, we might as well ask these people to join," she reasoned, and set the clipboard on the table. "So, do any of you want to join?"

"I'll pass," Temari said without missing a beat, "I think drama's a waste of time." Upon hearing this, Sakura "hmphed" and turned her bright gaze onto Kankuro.

"Then, will you join?" she inquired hopefully. Kankuro snorted.

"Like I ever would. Temari's right, drama's a waste of time," he said. The pink-haired girl turned to Gaara and opened her mouth to speak, but Naruto interrupted her.

"He's not gonna answer you, I was in one of his classes and he _never_ talks," he told her. His cerulean eyes found Hinata, who was fiddling with her thumbs with her head facing the ground, and swiftly moved towards her. "You seem like a more reasonable person! Will you join our club?"

"She's not going to join a club like that, Hinata has more common s—Hinata, what are you doing!" Temari raised her voice ever so slightly as the blue-haired girl wordlessly took the pen and started on the curly 'H' of 'Hyuuga'. Naruto saw this, and let out a cry of joy.

"Yes! Thanks, uh, Hinata, was it? Yeah, thanks, Hinata!" he yelled, throwing his arms around Hinata's neck. He didn't notice as her face flushed the color of Sakura's hair. He rambunctiously ran off, Sakura trailing behind him.

Temari looked at the flustered face sitting at her side, seeming as though she were contemplating the situation. It was a bit amazing how someone could develop a crush on someone so quickly, even a hyperactive boy like Naruto. The spilling of some juice interrupted her thoughts. Hinata let out a small gasp and jumped up.

"I-I'm going to go and clean this up," she said, heading off in the direction of the restroom. Temari nodded and returned to her thoughts.

Reaching the restroom, Hinata pushed open the door and went directly to the sink. She twisted the knob clockwise and wet a paper towel. The Hyuuga dabbed and rubbed and wiped, but to no avail, for the pesky stain had seemingly locked itself inside the fibers of her shirt. _What in the world was put in that drink to make the stain so hard to get rid of? _Hinata silently wondered. Deciding her efforts were fruitless, she resolved to just wear her navy jacket over her shirt and wash the stain when she got back home. Hinata made for the door, but let out a small scream and fell backwards onto the grimy tiles, fairly surprised at what she saw.

"Hello, Hinata," said the looming figure above her. It was a girl, a towering girl – or perhaps it seemed so because of Hinata's being on the floor – who sported a long, blonde, ponytail. She had seen her somewhere before, hadn't she? _Maybe in one of my earlier classes?_ Hinata thought, but waved it away as she remembered the situation at hand.

Hinata tried to speak, but her mouth opened and closed uselessly as a byproduct of her fear, creating no sound whatsoever. She looked away. How could she have gotten herself into such a quagmire? It was only then that she noticed the girl standing behind the other one.

The other girl had a soft, gentle face that sort of calmed Hinata naturally. Her hair was, at the moment, tied into two buns at the sides of her head.

"Ino, look at her, you're scaring her!" she berated. Ino gave an exasperated sigh.

"But, if we're just all nice and whatever, she'll think we're pushovers!" she complained.

"Who...who are you?"

Ino and her friend were distracted from their bickering for a moment. Even Hinata was surprised at this sudden line.

"Oh, what a _cute _voice!" Ino squealed, taking Hinata aback. This was definitely _not _the reply that was expected. "Come, come! You're coming with us to our table!" With that, she extended her hand to the quivering girl before her.

It was just then that Hinata realized she was sitting on the grimy tiles of the girl's restroom. She sprang up, not wishing to befoul her clothing any longer. _Should I go with them? I did promise to sit with Temari, after all…plus, my backpack's there…_ Ultimately, she decided to also extend her hand and place it in Ino's.

"Alright! Let's go!" Ino said jubilantly, and marched off, Hinata and Tenten following in her wake.

No one talked during the (seemingly) long walk to…well, wherever they were going. Ino jauntily sported a satisfied face while she led the other two girls to a table with a familiar face.

"Huh," said Sakura, "haven't I seen you before?"

Before Hinata could say a word, Sakura started again.

"Oh yeah, you were that girl who signed up for the drama club, aren't you? Thanks for that, by the way," she said.

"O-oh, you're welcome," said Hinata politely. Ino waved a hand around pointlessly.

"You guys, let's get to the point here!" she said impatiently. Tenten stared at her.

"Well, Ino, would you care to tell us exactly _what _your point is?" said she.

"Well…" Ino began hesitantly, "you kind of have a good point there."

"So, your point is that you don't have a point…and you're pointing out that I have a good point for pointing out the fact that you didn't say your point yet, which is that there is no point?" Tenten said.

"Whatever you said!" Ino cheerfully exclaimed.

"Anyways, why'd you abduct her?" inquired Sakura.

"It wasn't abduction! It was voluntary arrest (4)!" protested Ino. "And I _voluntarily arrested _her," she said, stressing the third and fourth words, "because we need someone else in our lunch group!"

"But why her? Why not some other poor, clean soul who has yet to be infected with the Ino-plague?" Sakura pointed out to Ino's indignation.

"Don't sound so full of yourself, Sakura!" she said loftily. "And isn't it obvious? We can make her popular!"

"What?" Hinata uttered, surprised.

"Yeah! We can help her be pretty, and, popular, and…and…and so much stuff! It'll be so much fun!" squealed Ino, now so caught up in her great plan, she didn't even notice Hinata's small protests. "Of course you'll assist me, right, Sakura? Tenten?" However, before the others could answer, Naruto came bounding by.

"I just talked to Kurenai, she says we have enough people now for the drama club to continue! It's not going to die! It's not going to die!" he cheered, pulling Sakura out of her seat and bouncing around in a sort of victory dance. "Oh, and, hi. Oh! You're Hinata, aren't you!" Naruto stopped and looked at her while Sakura flopped to the ground exhausted. "Thank you so much for joining drama! Without you, our club would've been discontinued!" He hugged her for the second time that day, still unaware of the color her face turned. When he left, Ino looked at the spot on which he once stood, and then studied Hinata. A devious grin started to form on her face and she turned so she faced all three girls.

"So, everyone, are you with me on my idea? I think, maybe, this turn of events has led us to see the light of my plan, has it not?"

"I still think this is weird – " started Tenten, but Ino now turned to Hinata for support.

"You agree with me, don't you, Hinata?" Ino said sweetly.

"Well, sure, but I really should be getting ba – "

"Excellent!" Ino said, but was interrupted as the bell rang throughout the cafeteria, prompting the hundreds of students to pack their things up and hurry to their fifth period classes. "Meet here tomorrow for the continuation of Project: Popularity! This meeting is officially adjourned!"

**XXX**

Phew…that took a long time to finish. Time for footnotes!

(1) There originally was a part at the beginning in which Temari helped Hinata out after a hall monitor unjustly stopped her, but it was kind of weird so I took it out.

(2) Because he does not like unfamiliar surroundings.

(3) I know the ages are different from canon, but it needs to be this way for the storyline.

(4) An in-joke for Melancholy fans.


	2. The One With the Concussion

I've been putting it off for a long time…so here it is.

XXX

_She's probably angry with me for not coming back to the table…_

Worries such as these plagued Hinata's thoughts as she tried to change quickly for P.E. After Ino's little speech at lunch, she had had to dash across the cafeteria to get her backpack from the table at which she had sat. Temari, of course, had already left for her next class. Then after cursing herself letting an opportunity for a new friend slip by (it was difficult for her to make friends at all), Hinata sprinted across campus to the locker rooms, silently thankful there were no teachers around who could give her a punishment for running.

After she changed into her P.E. uniform – a white t-shirt emblazoned with "Konoha High" and green shorts – Hinata set off for the gym, which was conveniently located next to the locker rooms.

The door was held open by a door-wedge, so Hinata just strode in nervously, wondering if she was late to class at all. Apparently, she was not – Maito Gai's class was as rambunctious as the cafeteria had been at lunch. It was simple to slip inside unnoticed. She saw that Gai was conversing with another teacher at the moment (with very extravagant hand gestures) – that was probably part of the reason why no one particularly cared if they talked.

"Good afternoon, my youthful students!" Gai finally called out. "Today we will be playing a teamwork-strengthening game of dodge-ball!"

"I thought that was on the banned list?" a student said.

Gai chuckled, striding over to pat the boy on his head. "No, no, no, that's _violent _dodge-ball. You are all good students, so this game of dodge ball will be fun!" The students goggled at his ridiculous speech. What kind of teacher was this…absurdity? "Now, some of you go over on this side, and others on that side and give it better than the best you possibly can!"

The class scrambled to be on the same side as their friends. Hinata found herself quite jostled and bumped every which way, as she did not know where to go.

"Hi, Hinata!"

Hinata turned, and smiled when she saw a familiar mass of pink hair heading towards her.

"Hello, Sakura!" she said brightly, glad to have someone she knew in her class. Sakura beamed back at her.

"Let's be on the same tea –" But a hyperactive boy interrupted the sentence with a shout. The two girls twisted and craned their necks, attempting to find the source of the voice.

"YES! THIS WILL BE MY CHANCE TO PROVE MY YOUTHFULNESS IN AN HONORABLE BATTLE OF DODGE BALL!" And the boy threw the ball so fast even Hinata, with her above perfect vision, could only see a mahogany-colored blur coming nearer and nearer…and then the world turned black.

XXX

_Where am I? I'm not dead, am I?_

"Hinata…Hinata…"

_Who is it…_

Her eyes fluttered open. Staring back at her were two wide, teal eyes and a head of dark blonde hair.

"Huh? Who's there…" Hinata groaned, suddenly aware of the throbbing pain erupting in her head.

"It's just me. Temari, remember?" said she.

"Why are you here?" inquired Hinata, still attempting to remember what had happened.

"I'm an office aide for fifth period. If you haven't noticed yet, you're in the nurse's office."

"What?" This information made Hinata sit straight up, observing the area around her. Sure enough, she was on a white cot in a clean room. Green and white tiles covered the floor and medicine cabinets adorned the walls. The Hyuuga even thought she caught a whiff of that funny smell which hospitals always have.

"If you're wondering why _you're_ here, it's pretty simple actually. Apparently, a kid called Lee got overexcited during your class's game of dodge ball and threw the ball before the game started. Next thing you know, you're being carried into the nurse's office with a concussion," Temari explained. "You've been out for about half and hour, so sixth period's going to start in about fifteen minutes."

"Really? Hard to believe the day's almost over…" murmured Hinata.

"Yeah…"

No one moved a muscle. It was just then that Hinata again realized what she was so worried about after lunch that day. _I guess she really _is_ angry with me…_ Hinata thought forlornly. _I should explain it to her._

"Umm – about earlier –"

Temari turned to look at Hinata, but the door suddenly opened at this most inopportune moment. _Dang…and just when I was about to apologize, too… _she cursed silently.

"You idiot!"

"What a troublesome person…"

"Now, come over here and sit still…hold this tissue to your nose, I'll be right back to check up on you." And with that, the school nurse hurried out of the office.

"Kiba!" Hinata gasped, for she had finally recognized the boy under the gushing stream of blood from his nose. "What happened to you?"

"Eh? Hinata, is that you? What are you doing here?" asked Kiba confusedly.

"Head injury," said Hinata, "but never mind that! You're bleeding!" She tried to get out of her cot, but as soon as her feet touched the ground, another pain struck her head and she opted instead for a chair.

"I'm fine. Smarty-pants here," Kiba glared at the boy beside him, "hit me in the nose. Jeez, you'd think someone like him wouldn't be so strong…"

"It was an accident," muttered the boy, "you just happened to be in to way of my hand."

Hinata studied the speaker. She had never seen him before. What was with all the odd hairstyles in this school? The newcomer had pulled his pitch-black hair into a sort of…pineapple-ish way. "Um, if it's not too rude to ask, what's your name?"

The pineapple-boy sighed, as though it were too much trouble to answer, and turned his head a few degrees to face her. "Shikamaru."

"Of the Nara family?" said Hinata, surprised. Her cousin, Neji, had told her once of Konoha's prestigious Nara family, even naming some of its members. Most of the names used some form of "shika," for the Nara were famous because of the deer they raised.

_Nara Shikamaru is the heir to the Nara, Neji had said. A shrewd kid, thinker, and strategist with an intelligence quotient of over two hundred…_

"Yeah. Why?" Shikamaru asked suspiciously. Hinata blushed and immediately began to stammer.

"N-no reason…I was just wondering…" She hesitated, and then continued. "I've heard you have an IQ of over two hundred…is that true?"

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed at this question. _I hope I didn't offend him in some way… _Hinata thought nervously. He seemed to be battling whether to answer or not.

"Yes. Who told you that?" he at last replied.

"My cousin…his name is Neji," said Hinata.

"Your cousin is _Neji_?" sputtered Temari (who had remained silent until this point), startling everyone. "Hinata, does he live at your house?"

"Yes…" Hinata said slowly. Most of the Hyuuga lived in one huge house; some even called it a mansion.

"Oh, God…Hinata, just remember to never invite me to your house…"

"Why?"

Temari paused. "Well," she began, "it's kind of a weird story. I guess it began about…two, three years ago. I was still a sophomore in high school at Suna, and Neji was a freshman at Konoha. We were both in our respective debate teams, and one day we were at the same competition. His team won, and he was kind of annoying about it, so I bet that he couldn't withstand the powers of hypnosis.

"Of course, he didn't believe me. So I hypnotized him with this trick I got out of a book…and to this day, whenever he hears the word 'snickerdoodle,' he will confess his love to whoever he's talking with."

Everyone stared at her. Then Kiba started laughing hysterically, Hinata began to giggle, and even Shikamaru looked immensely amused.

"Yeah, well, he didn't think it was so funny," continued a smiling Temari, "and in those few instances our teams were at the same event, he's tried to attack me, but stopped when his team started losing points for 'foul play.'"

Kiba still had tears in his eyes as he kept laughing. "Oh man, I want to see that…the stoic Neji, confessing his love to some unsuspecting victim…" This made everyone laugh even more.

All four were quiet for a few moments. Then Kiba stood up abruptly. "I think my nose has stopped bleeding, so I'm going to go now."

"Oh, but the nurse still hasn't come back yet…" Hinata said worriedly.

"It's all right, it was just a bloody nose. She'll probably figure on her own that I'm okay now and I left," reasoned Kiba. "Come on, Shikamaru." He pulled open the dark green door that was the entrance to the nurse's office.

As the two boys left, Temari looked at Hinata expectantly. "Well, what were you going to say before they interrupted?"

"Oh! Um…"

Hinata's head faced the ground as she told the entire story – from how a girl abducted her to when she suddenly got herself entangled in "Project: Popularity."

"…and so, that's why I never came back to the table. I hope you're not too angry with me…" finished Hinata. The room was silent for a few seconds. Then Temari burst out laughing, leaving a bamboozled Hinata.

"Sorry," she laughed, tears in her eyes, "but it's so funny! That Ino girl is the same as my art partner, right? Thought so. Are you going to go back tomorrow?"

"Well, I guess so," Hinata shrugged. "After all, it would be rude to stand them up."

"Like you did to me?" suggested Temari.

Hinata's face flushed and faced the ground once more. "I'm sorry about that…" she muttered.

"Don't be," Temari said, "I'm only kidding around anyways." She stood up. "Sorry to leave, but I have to get these files to one of the counselors and get ready for sixth period. Come to think of it, shouldn't you be hurrying to the locker rooms to change?"

Hinata looked at her clothing – she was still wearing her P.E. uniform. "You're right. I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then."

XXX

"So, what was your next class again?" Kiba asked Shikamaru as they walked down the office hall.

"Cooking," he replied. "Jeez, can't you even remember something like that?"

"_Cooking? _You're taking _cooking?_" said Kiba in disbelief. As he started rambling on about his friend's weird schedule, a door opened. A blonde girl walked out and hurried to the front desk.

"- did someone _force_ you to take cooking, or something?" the Inuzuka finally finished, then looked at Shikamaru. His ebony eyes looked glazed over, staring down the hall. "Hello?" Kiba waved a hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention.

"Huh? Oh…what were you saying?"

Kiba examined Shikamaru oddly. His face was completely back to his regular, lazy state, with no trace of the past ten seconds at all. Kiba thought he had an idea of the situation at hand, but decided not to press matters further.


	3. The One with the Upset Naruto

(Please check the notes at the end of the chapter before asking questions)

Hello :D It took such a long time to write this…kind of pitiful, really. So without further ado, here is chapter three of Project: Popularity.

**XXX**

Hinata sighed as she entered the doors of the mansion in which she lived. It had been a fairly taxing day. However, she barely had time to relax before her sister poked her head into the room.

"Hinata, Father wants to talk with you," said Hanabi.

"Really?" Hinata said. Her father had not requested one of these conferences in a while—she suspected it had something to do with her studies. Hyuuga Hiashi had always been very strict about schoolwork, and often pushed his daughters to achieve excellent grades. "Alright, then."

Hanabi's petite face disappeared as her older sister took off her shoes, placing them against the wall, and headed to the study, where Hiashi could often be found.

Her father sat on the chair at the other end of the room, reading a book. His eyes darted upward when Hinata walked into the room, closing the book and beckoning his daughter forward.

"Hinata."

"Father."

"How was your first day at school?"

"Fine, Father."

"What's that?"

Hinata paused, perplexed, and then realized he was talking about the bruise on her forehead.

"I was hit with a dodge ball in P.E."

"I see." She sensed a hint of disapproval in his voice: Hiashi wasn't as supportive of P.E. as he was of academics, but it was still part of school and Hinata was expected to excel at it all the same.

"I have not called you only because of academic matters, Hinata."

Hinata looked up. She could not remember a time when he had called her to talk about non-academic issues.

"You are familiar with your cousin Neji, correct?"

"Yes, Father," she replied, although Hinata was not on good terms with him at all.

"He will be moving here in next week. I expect that you will treat him with the same respect as you would to your immediate family."

Her eyes widened. "May I ask why, Father?"

He raised an eyebrow, and Hinata blushed at how inconsiderate her question sounded.

"W-why he is moving here, I mean…"

"That is none of your concern. Please go to your room and do your homework."

"Yes, Father." It was pointless to tell him that there was no homework on the first day of school besides the massive project Kakashi assigned them. She obediently left the room, brushing past Hanabi as she walked up the lengthy flight of stairs.

Reaching her room, Hinata set her backpack on the floor and, with a sigh, flopped onto her bed. Her head didn't twinge anymore, but it became dizzy from all the thoughts about the eventful day. First of all, why was Neji moving? And moving to her house, no less! It must've been serious, though, for Hinata knew that her cousin detested anything to do with her family—although come to think of it, she had never really known why.

She got up and went to her desk to turn on the computer. _If I'm going to be in my room for a while, I might as well research for art, _she thought, and typed in her password, 443494, proceeding to search for a list of art styles.

The number of them was staggering: a quick scan of the list told Hinata that there were well over fifty of them, perhaps even a hundred. She decided to just look at the ones that sounded interesting and print out examples to show Gaara.

The clock only read four o'clock, so Hinata still had time to waste before she was called for dinner, and decided to check her e-mail. _You have __**3 **__unread messages, _the text on the screen told her.

Two of the e-mails turned out to be junk (_"Your free 7-day trial is waiting!" "Get slim quick with SlimQuick!"_), but the third was from Sakura. What would she be doing e-mailing her? Hinata thought at first it might have to do with the…project…but the subject line stated otherwise.

_Hello,_

_Thank you for your expressed interest in the drama club. Attached are the purposes and such of the club, as well as a list of future meetings._

_Many previous members have also left school. We wish them a happy and successful life from here on out, but this also means that the drama club is short on several officers. If you would like to apply, please fill out the attached form and send it to me (__) as soon as possible._

_- Sakura, drama club vice-president_

Hinata wondered about the lack of name usage in the message but quickly realized Sakura had sent the same e-mail to several other people. Mentally berating herself for not knowing such an obvious thing, she clicked on the first two attachments.

**_Konoha High School Drama Club_**

_This club is devoted to:_

_heightened public speaking ability_

_encouragement of theatre_

_fun _:)

_If you would like to join, please print and detach the parent permission slip below and have your parent or legal guardian sign where indicated. Return it to an officer at the first meeting, September 1__st__._

_--_

**_Available Positions_**

_Secretary – records information during meetings; must have great organization skill and legible handwriting._

_Treasurer – keeps track of club's budget; must have great mathematical capability._

_Scriptwriter – writes scripts for drama performances; must have great literary prowess._

_Medic – treats any injuries or illnesses during meetings or practices; must have great medical knowledge and ability. Two of these positions are available._

_There is now a "medic" position available. This previous year, a few students were injured or fell ill and were unable to get proper medical assistance. This "medic" position is in case the same events happen this year during meetings or practices._

The last attachment, which was the list of meetings, was fairly self-explanatory. Hinata wondered, though, about the parent permission slip. Would her father be willing to sign it? He was extremely supportive of all other academics, so surely he would approve of drama as well…right? She printed out the files and folded the form, putting it in her pocket so she could ask her father about it later.

There was still plenty of time, so she immersed herself in a book until Hanabi called her to dinner.

It was fairly quiet in the dining room, like always. The table was smaller than would be expected of a family as wealthy as the Hyuuga. After all, there was only three—four, when Neji moved—people in the family. Hinata's mother had died when Hinata was seven.

"Hanabi, how was school?" Hiashi asked his younger daughter.

She swallowed her food and answered, "Fine, Father."

"How are your teachers?" Typical. Hiashi always wanted to know if Hanabi's teachers were adequate.

"Fine."

"I see."

The only noises for several long moments were the clattering of silverware as they ate in silence. Hinata decided to ask Hiashi about joining the drama club. _No use if I put it off, anyways,_ she thought.

"Father?"

Hiashi put down his fork and looked at her. It was rare for Hinata to speak at dinner unless someone addressed her first.

"Yes?"

"Could you please sign a permission slip for me? It's for the drama club." Even Hinata was surprised at the unwavering of her voice.

"What is this…drama club?"

"It's a club for students who like public speaking and theatre."

"Does it have anything to do with academics?"

"Well…not really, it's more like—"

"Then you may not go."

Hinata gaped at her father, who had turned his attention back to the meal. "May…may I ask why, Father?"

His expression when he looked at her once more almost made her regret her words.

"Your grades are suffering as of late. You achieved a B minus average on the last report card, which is completely unacceptable. If this drama club will take studying time away, then it will not be an option."

Hinata opened her mouth to say something, but faltered under Hiashi's austere glare. She had long since learned how to deal with her family, and opposing the adamant head of Hyuuga was not on the "do" list.

"If you two are done with your dinner, then you may leave."

Hinata glanced at her half-finished food, wondering when it had transformed itself into an unappetizing mush. She immediately decided she was not hungry and left the table with Hanabi.

**XXX**

Hinata groggily opened her eyes. What was that mysterious beeping noise? Oh, yes, the alarm clock. She sat upright with a yawn and turned off the annoying mechanism.

After changing her clothes, she went downstairs for breakfast.

"Where's Father?" Hinata asked her sister, who was already pouring cereal into her bowl.

"He had to leave early to take care of something at his office," replied Hanabi.

_Oh. Well, that's pretty obvious, now_ _that I come to think of it, _Hinata thought.

"Sorry you couldn't join that club," she continued.

The elder Hyuuga smiled to her. They had never had a very close relationship, so it was nice to talk like they were at the moment. "Thanks."

"If you still want to join, you could always, you know, forge a signature…"

"Hanabi, you know I can't do that. Besides, what would happen if Father found out?" Hinata didn't bother to mention that she had been thinking about forgery as well.

"Oh, yeah…"

They finished their cereal in silence. Once she drank the last dregs of milk, Hinata took a glance at the clock and stood.

"I should be going now. You should too, it takes a long time to get to your school from here," she said.

Hanabi nodded, and the two girls hurried to grab their backpacks and leave.

**XXX**

Hinata walked into art class feeling a little bit better than she had been feeling before about drama. She slid into her seat next to Kiba, greeted him, and started listening to Kakashi.

"You're going to spend time today working on your projects, but first, I'd like each of you to draw yourself in your ideal world," he announced. "As you can see, there's a sheet of paper on each of your desks. You can provide your own pencils."

Hinata got out a pencil, deciding to not use color. My ideal world… she mused, wondering what to draw. As she thought, her hand idly moved the pencil around the sheet, making random black marks. This continued for a while, until Hinata realized what she was doing and reached for an eraser. But as she held the eraser between her fingers, she looked at the marks and smiled, lowering her pencil and drawing around them. And as the ideas flew around Hinata's mind, her pencil glided around the paper. Strokes of different sizes and shapes appeared and sometimes she would bite her lip, wondering what to do next, but drew as soon as another mental image manifested itself. And once more, the previously blank sheet would be swathed in magnificence.

She didn't even notice as Kakashi walked to her desk, so immersed in her work. He was intrigued by this talented girl sitting in front of him and oblivious to the staring eyes around her. He allowed her a few moments more to draw, and then said, "May I?"

Hinata snapped up with a start. She looked around, shocked to see the surrounding students staring at her as if she had grown another head. And then she looked at Kakashi in front of her, standing there with pure curiosity sketched on his face.

"S-sure…" she said with hesitation, and handed the paper to her teacher.

Kakashi observed the picture for several long moments, leaving Hinata to worry and stress over what he would say. Finally, he lowered it and asked her, "Have you ever taken art classes before?"

She certainly had not been expecting that. "No…" answered Hinata, who hadn't the faintest idea where this was leading.

The art teacher raised an eyebrow. "Come see me after class, alright?"

Hinata nodded numbly. _What just happened?_

"Alright, everyone, you should've had enough time to finish by now. Pass your pictures forward, and meet with your partner to discuss the project. After this week, you won't have much in-class time for this, so schedule other sessions if you need to."

Hinata sighed in relief as the class stopped gazing and scurried to find their partners. Then she realized she had to find Gaara and shuddered. A few minutes of his taciturnity was enough to last her a lifetime.

Once they had sat, Hinata realized with a jolt that she had completely forgotten about the information she had printed earlier, and hurried to get it out of her backpack.

"I found some information yesterday…this is a list of some of the art styles," she told Gaara.

He looked over the list with mild interest—or was that boredom? She could never decipher his facial expressions.

"You can just look at the examples…and decide which movement you like best, and we'll do that if you want to…"

"I don't really care. You can pick."

Hinata gasped softly, and when Gaara looked at her she hastily turned it into a cough. He had actually spoken two full sentences to her. She lost herself in these thoughts before seeing that Gaara was still staring at her, waiting for a reply.

"Oh! Alright then…um…can we do Color Field painting, then?"

Gaara inclined his head a little to show approval.

"Everyone! The bell's about to ring soon, so you might want to start packing up," Kakashi said.

"See you tomorrow, then," said Hinata, and slung her backpack over her shoulders as the bell sounded. Gaara paused, then nodded, and Hinata smiled. It seemed like he was becoming more open to her, if only a little.

Wondering what Kakashi wanted, she waited until most of the class had piled out, and then approached his desk.

"Hinata, was it?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Hinata, this picture is amazing."

_What? _was Hinata's first reaction to the news. She had never been anything special, especially in school. _I can't have heard right, can I?_

Kakashi smiled at her shocked expression. "It is. You seem to have a natural flair for art, since you said you had never taken classes before. So the reason I called you here was to ask you if you wanted to be moved into a more advanced class."

"An…advanced class?" she asked, her voice coming out a bit hoarse.

"Yes. We have two levels of art here at Konoha. Normally, one would need to take this class for a full year before trying the advanced class, but I think you have quite enough skill to make it. So, what do you think, Hinata?"

"Oh…um…" Hinata stalled for time, taken aback by the fact that she was expected to decide at that moment. "Well…I'm sorry…I think I'd like to stay in this class."

"Really? May I ask why?"

"Well…I might have…skill…at it, like you said, but I never really learned. And I think I should do that, the basics, before anything else. And Gaara will be left without a partner, too…"

"I see. Well, in that case, would you like to look into some contests? There's currently one online, I can give you the address if you want."

She hesitated. "Alright, then."

"Excellent. There are the rules and everything on the site," explained Kakashi as he scribbled something on a scrap of paper and handed it to Hinata.

She thanked him and left, finding Temari waiting for her.

"You really didn't have to wait," said Hinata.

"It's not a big deal. Besides, you have to show me to those girls' table," Temari said.

"Oh, yeah…" The upcoming meeting with Ino, Tenten, and Sakura had completely slipped her mind.

**XXX**

"Late!" Ino accused Hinata. "If you're going to be a part of this project, then you have to be on time! And why is Temari here?"

"To make sure you guys don't do anything weird," Temari said flatly.

"Well…fine. As long as Hinata's okay with it. But no more inviting people to our meetings!

"We—that is, Sakura, Tenten, and I—have been discussing. The consensus is that we will visit your house today!"

"What?" Hinata had been expecting something else entirely—well, she wasn't really sure _what _she was expecting, but certainly not visiting her home. "Why?"

"To change someone, you need to have an understanding of who they presently are first! So we'll all pay a visit to your house and see stuff like…what your wardrobe is, how your room is decorated, your family…stuff like that," Ino explained.

"Hinata, is there anything we should know before coming over?" asked Sakura gently. With a pang, Hinata realized that she would have to tell her she couldn't join the drama club, but put off the feeling. _I'll tell her when I need to…_

"Well…this might or might not be necessary," she began slowly, "but my father said that my cousin is moving in with us sometime next week." She was amused to note that Temari had paled a tiny bit. "My father's a bit taciturn, but Hanabi, my sister, is fairly easy to get along with. I think that's all."

"Perfect!" Ino said. "So we'll be coming over today, alright? Be prepared! Tenten, let's go—we still need to do that you-know-what!" And with that, the two left.

"HINATA!" a voice called out.

The three remaining girls turned to see who it was. "Hinata, did you get your permission slip signed?"

"O-oh…Naruto."

"Naruto!" said Sakura. "Didn't I tell you they could just e-mail us?"

"Sorry, but I couldn't wait! Some people didn't reply at _all!" _he whined.

"It's only been a day! Hinata might not even have checked her e-mail yet!" They both looked at Hinata, and she shrunk, still abhorrent of the spotlight.

"Um…well…I actually can't join," she said meekly.

Naruto stared at her. "What do you mean, you can't join?"

"My father wouldn't sign the permission slip…"

His face fell. "What about your mom?"

Hinata stopped to think of a good excuse. She had no intention of mentioning her mother's death. "My mom is…out of town."

There was a long pause. "Oh." Hinata startled at this word. It sounded distant, even kind of cold—and it didn't sound like Naruto.

"Naruto…are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'll see you guys later, I guess."

He shuffled away, no longer the warm, energetic entity he was just moments previously.

Sakura looked at his receding figure forlornly. Hinata turned to her for answers.

"Have I ever mentioned that Naruto was the one who created this club?"

Hinata shook her head.

"He did. Exactly one year ago, he decided that this school was too boring," Sakura smiled at the memory, "and went to the principal to request a drama club. It took a long time, but the school board decided to let him try—on the condition that he got at least nine other students to join.

"Of course, he approached me right after. I joined, of course, and we somehow managed to pull together a group of twenty-two other students who wanted in. It was wonderful. We received praise from the school newspaper, and got comments like 'you helped me to not be shy anymore' and such.

"On the other hand, some things didn't go smoothly at all. A few students, like I said in the e-mail, got injured from things like falling off the stage, or got so stressed with learning lines or creating costumes that their schoolwork suffered. The school board threatened to shut down the club.

"So Naruto spent the whole summer revamping the club and trying to convince them to let the club exist further. They gave him a second chance, on their initial condition that nine students joined. It wasn't so easy. Many graduated, some changed schools, some were prohibited by their parents, and still others just lost interest. We were back to just him and me.

"And we managed to do the impossible again, and pulled together exactly eight more members, you included. And then you told us, of course, that you couldn't join, bringing us to seven. We can only imagine, really, how he feels about all this work down the drain. Not only that, but all that praise and everything would never be heard again. I think he really thought he could do something to help people, you know, gain confidence and have fun and everything…"

Hinata felt horrible after Sakura had finished the lengthy speech. Naruto had done so much to keep the club alive, and she had been the one to ruin it! Sakura must've seen the expression on her face, because the next thing she said was, "No, no, it's not your fault, really! It was bound to happen eventually. In fact, there's probably someone else on our list who's not joining anymore."

Hinata smiled a little. "Thanks. Do you know where Naruto could be? I could try to cheer him up, at the very least…"

"I'm not exactly sure, but he likes being on the rooftop. You could try there. The stairs are pretty near, you'll find it if you just go out that way and keep walking."

"Thanks," Hinata said as she picked up her backpack, "I'll see you later."

**XXX**

-Alright, I know a lot of people would think that Hinata's really good with studying and all that stuff, but I need something to show that Hiashi is disappointed and all with her.

-Some might be like "Oh, a B- isn't so bad" but the school where I go is _very _competitive. They have things like not allowing you to continue an advanced math course if you don't have at least an A minus, and in the students' minds, a B is a horrible grade.

-If anyone else were writing this fic, Sakura would probably be in the medic position. But her not being a medic in the club does serve its purpose later—nothing big, but it still has a purpose.

-I might or might not describe the actual drawing later in the story.


End file.
